Strong support from live-in help and grandparents as well as flexible working hours saw more women’s workplace participation in India, as the share of female hires increased from around 30% in April to reach 37% at the end of July, a LinkedIn study revealed on Tuesday.
India bucked the trend in maintaining and even increasing gender parity as the hiring of women in many developed countries followed a U-shaped trajectory in 2020, dipping in April before recovering in June and July.
Remote working schemes have allowed more women to enter the workforce despite the school and childcare facilities being closed during the lockdown, according to the second LinkedIn monthly edition of the ‘Labour Market Update’.
“In India, work from home has certainly boosted gender parity and emerged as a great equaliser in terms of gender diversity with increase in female representation across key sectors,” said Pei Ying Chua, APAC Lead Economist, Economic Graph team at LinkedIn.
“The lockdown, which promoted acceptance of the work from home concept supported by flexible work hours, has emerged as an opportunity for women to rebuild their careers and start afresh,” Chua added.
Source: ET Tech
